Pylat bird

Biology and appearance

Pylats were medium-sized, non-sentient avian creatures whose natural habitat was the mountainous regions of Neimoidia. They possessed four limbs: two legs and two wings that also functioned as arms, each ending in a four-fingered clawed appendage resembling a "hand." A prominent and decorative crest of feathers adorned the top of their heads. Typically, pylats displayed predominantly white plumage, accented with colored markings on their crest, cheeks, and neck. They also had a long, broad tail that could be either white or exhibit darker hues. A less common variety found in the forests of Sojourn was characterized by white plumage speckled with red spots. As birds, pylats laid eggs that hatched outside the mother's body, and they were endothermic beings, utilizing internal food combustion to regulate their body heat.

Behavior

Within their native environment, pylats employed their conspicuous headcrests for display purposes. Although they fiercely defended their territories, bird aficionados found them appealing, and they were amenable to domestication. Their vocalizations were remarkably harmonious and pleasing to the ears—so much so that the quality of a pylat's song could be used as an indicator of its overall contentment. Pylats kept as pets were sometimes housed in special cages equipped with stasis field generators, while some owners preferred to carry their birds on their hands during walks.

History

The common pylat birds evolved on Neimoidia, a planet situated within the Colonies region of the galaxy. The sentient inhabitants of this world, a Near-Duros species known as the Neimoidians, began to associate pylats with affluence and prestige, sparking envy among those who did not possess them. Their rich eggs were also considered a delicacy in Neimoidian culinary traditions. At some point in the past, pylats also established a presence on Sojourn, a moon located in the Outer Rim Territories, where they evolved into a distinct subspecies.

Pylats in the galaxy

Due to their white plumage and soothing melodies, pylat birds were highly valued as companion animals by the galaxy's elite. During the final decades of the Galactic Republic, a red-spotted pylat became entangled in a scheme that would ultimately determine the fate of the galaxy. Desiring an alliance with the Trade Federation to advance their Grand Plan, the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Plagueis arranged for a pylat bird from Sojourn to be delivered to Nute Gunray, the Viceroy of the Trade Federation. Initially, Gunray was perplexed by the unusual bird, unable to ascertain its origin, but he was ultimately pleased by the gift, which soon became a prized possession in his office, and Gunray enjoyed the envy his colleagues had for the bird.

Shortly thereafter, Plagueis' apprentice Darth Sidious—publicly known as Senator Palpatine of Naboo—contacted Gunray via holo and claimed responsibility for sending the bird, initiating a more extensive conversation. Because Gunray was unfamiliar with the powers wielded by Sith Lords, Sidious threatened to demonstrate them by killing the pylat remotely. Gunray quickly recognized the benefits of complying with Sidious' demands. However, Sidious and Plagueis had completely deceived Gunray. The bird was not actually from Sojourn, but rather a clone of a red-spotted pylat from Sojourn, created on Kamino—one of the many tests Plagueis commissioned from the Kaminoans in preparation for the eventual order of a clone army.

Later, when the Federation blockaded Naboo under Sidious' instructions, Gunray kept several caged pylats in the conference room of his flagship, the Saak'ak. When he filled the room with poison gas in a failed assassination attempt against Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn and his Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi, the birds perished in their cages, providing the Jedi with a visual warning of the impending danger.

Despite their longstanding popularity among the social elite, pylat birds were not displayed at the Coruscant Livestock Exchange and Exhibition until after the establishment of the New Republic in 4 ABY. Following their exhibition there, a Sy Myrthian diplomat owned a pylat bird as a pet. The renowned zoologist Lyrre T'enna created impromptu sketches of pylats that were included in the published version of her field guide.

Behind the scenes

Several exotic cagebirds were originally intended to appear in the 1999 film Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace. They were planned to be featured at the beginning of the movie, during the scene in which the Jedi ambassadors detect the presence of poisonous gas in the conference room. The pylats were to die in their cages, alerting the Jedi to the gas attack. However, the movie's production team ultimately decided that the presence of birds in a negotiation room during a blockade seemed inappropriate, as did the notion that the Jedi required such a visual cue to detect the gas. While that footage was ultimately cut, it remained present in Terry Brooks' novelization of The Phantom Menace, which was released shortly before the film itself. Original production artwork by Terryl Whitlatch dated February 1997 depicted the Neimoidian birds as phoenix-like creatures with flowing red feathers and eye-shaped purple markings.

The exotic birds that were removed from The Phantom Menace were first shown in their current form and identified as "pylat birds" in Star Wars: Episode I The Visual Dictionary, authored by David West Reynolds. According to the fan website T-Bone's Star Wars Universe, Reynolds derived the term from the name of Laura Pylat, a close friend from his time at the University of Michigan.

In the 2000s, Neimoidian bird cages were available for purchase in the Star Wars-themed MMORPG Star Wars Galaxies, but they were empty. Once again, the pylat did not make the final cut. However, they did make it into the 2012 novel Darth Plagueis, where they were explicitly mentioned and played a key role in the initial face-to-face holovid communication between Nute Gunray and Darth Sidious.